A new beginning
by sweet-sorrow
Summary: 3 Years after the Tokyo blockade incident, Momiji lives with Kusanagi until life takes a surprising turn! Pain consumes her as she tries to decide what to do. CHAPTER 3 is UP!!! XD XD R
1. Chapter One Returning

  
Chapter Two;  
**The Dawn brings an explanation**  
  
**T**hud.Thud.Thud.  
MomijiÕs own heartbeat drowned out the sound around her, filling in the space, leaving nothing empty. Her hazy green eyes clouded with confusionas she stared around her, not quite understanding where she was. All she could see was blue high above her....frames with bits of green and white tufts were thrown casually across the blue canvas above her. It took momiji a few moments to realize she was staring at a sky. Moving her arm tentatively, she found she was lying on the ground of a dirty dusty path.  
She heard that heartbeat of hers, so loud, so insisting, it was everywhere in her ears. Pushing herself onto her feet, she found herself looking over a small valley, and its center stood many a rustic huts, proof of human life. People dressed in thin animal skins walked around, some tending to pots simmering over a blazing fire, some bouncing crying infants on their knees in exasperation, and some working on tools of some kind in a corner of the village. Momiji rubbed her forehead in bewilderment. Where in the hell was she?!  
One minute she was sitting on a chair in her kitchen...and now here she was God knows where with some very uncivilized looking people. She wondered if they spoke any english.And then her hand froze in mid-movement as her eyes spotted the huge spiral green plants. All around the village and in the center of it, surrounding a tall platform on which a single person stood. A girl with jet black hair and dressed in ceremonial robes of some kind, adorned with beads and flowers. She raised her arms and stood in silence.  
Momiji watched as the people dropped what they were doing and began to gather around the platform. Some people looked mildly curious, while others looked worried and wondered what was happening.  
The chattering between the crowd died away, as the girl lowered her hands and began to move around the platform in what was no doubt a ceremonial dance of praise to the gods.  
Momiji stood high above them all, and she watched as the black haired girl moved faster and faster, and from within her robes produced a small object. The tall green plants began to shudder and move agitatedly. The crowd watched silently, as the girl stopped suddenly her hands high above her head, grasping something small and shiny. Momiji squinted to see what it was, and with a jolt realized it was a dagger, and moments before she could cry out, she knew what was happening and where she was.  
The dagger plunged forward and cut through the air with a protesting sound. Instinctively, the people began to cry out and some cheered and their voices rose in one massive outburst of emotion. MomijiÕs screaming was heard by no one as the blade pierced the flesh of the black haired Kushinada and the plants stopped shivering and with a rushing sound, burst into bloom.   
Tall red flowers each the size of a football field glowed an unnatural light above the people and the platform below them. The KushinadaÕs body hovered in the air a few moments before falling to the ground with a sickening noise. Blood flowed silently from her torso and slivered across the wooden platform. The people below her began to scream as mitamas rained from the huge flowering plants. Momiji yelled and yelled and no one could hear her.   
Thud.Thud.Thud. The heartbeat was louder and louder and it almost deafened Momiji and suddenly she opened her eyes and woke with a start.  
ÒAh-AHH!Ó She yelled as she slipped off the chair and fell to the floor in a heap.  
ÒOwww!Ó, Momiji groaned, rubbing her shoulder where it had collided with the floor.  
ÒWas that only a dream? It was the Rite of Matsuri... I know it!Ó, she said to herself.  
Slowly, painfully, Momiji raised herself shakily to her feet, grasping the table for support.  
Thud.Thud.Thud.Thud.  
What was that sound!? If it had only been in the dream then why was it so very audible now in the kitchen in the middle of the night?  
ÒMaybe I really am losing my mindÓ, Momiji grumbled to herself.  
THUD.  
Momiji stared around the room, not really expecting to see anything, but just trying to concentrate and find the source of the persistent sound.  
THUD!  
Momiji scowled. _This noise is going to wake the whole house up_, she thought.  
THUD. ÒHello!!Ó, A voice cried hopefully from behind the back door, only a few feet away from where Momiji was standing.  
Momiji stopped dead in her tracks. She could have even bet her heart had stopped.  
Beat. Beat. Stop. Silence. Nothing.  
She closed her eyes, and opened them again. That voice was all too familiar. She had spent the last three years trying to keep a memory of that voice alive, though she had never tried to think of what that voice had said to her. Through the window she could see the sun rising faintly over the horizon, streaking the sky with pink and gold colors. Not now, Momiji thought. Not now.  
Now the thudding had simpled down to a quiet and faint knock, and if Momiji closed her eyes, she could almost pretend she had imagined it. But no.  
Moving purposefully, Momiji stood up tall as she could, and moved torwards the kitchen back door, regret and hope in every stride. Her fingers found the brass knob, and with a numb feeling, she turned it, leaving the door to swing open freely.  
The dawnÕs few early rays shone down on MomijiÕs doorstep, and barely illuminated the person who had tried so desperately to get in. Now, Momiji stood, and stared at a person who might as well have been holding up a mirror. MomijiÕs green eyes, full of shock and hope and yearning, stared into a pair of green eyes exactly like hers, except they were full of resignation and understanding but also hope.  
Momiji gasped and her hands flew to her mouth. Her eyes roamed the girlÕs face, as if seeing it for the first time and taking in every detail and not wanting to let go. Ever.  
Momiji stared at her twinÕs face. KaedeÕs face. She was here, Kaede was here in front of her, flesh and blood!  
Kaede looked back with equal curiosity and anticipation, wondering if she had done the right thing, coming back to a world she never thought she would want to return to.  
She broke the silence first.  
ÒSisterÓ, Kaede whispered, placing her hand upon MomijiÕs shoulder.  
Momiji let her hands drop from her face, her mouth slightly open, fully shocked to feel the warmth of her sisterÕs hand on her arm. She looked at Kaede and blinked.  
Kaede looked just as she had three years ago, still dressed in the off-pink ceremonial robes, her blue-black hair still short and framing her perfectly built face. With that determined look on her face, Kaede almost always reminded Momiji of a younger Ms. Takeuchi, who could very well be KaedeÕs mother. The low cut front of the robe revealed a little bit of KaedeÕs neck and shoulders and chest, enough to let a brightly blue colored crystal mitama shine brilliantly against the pale creamy color of KaedeÕs skin. Momiji stared at the mitama, almost unbeliviengly. How could her sister have a mitama? How could she even BE here?!?  
ÒK-KaedeÓ, Momiji breathed, almost daring to believe her own words, Ò Youre...youre **real**Ó  
Kaede closed her eyes in relief, and smiled. She had felt the hopefulness in MomijiÕs words, how the girl almost sounded like she was in a very, very pleasant dream, and she knew that she was welcome here.  
ÒYes, sister. Momiji. Im here. Im real.Ó, she said calmly.   
Kaede sounded so happy and calm and somehow distant that for a second Momiji thought her dear sister was sounding a bit drugged. On the other hand, maybe Momiji herself had hit her head a bit too hard, taking that fall off the kitchen chair, and was hallucinating.  
She found herself staring at the mitama again, almost hypnotized by its unfazed glow.  
Kaede followed MomijiÕs glance, and reached up a hand to trace the smooth outline of the blue shape upon her chest.  
ÒA mitama.Ó Momiji finally said. She almost sounded accusing.  
ÒYes. I-I came here... because I wanted to live...on earth...with you...and...everyone..Ó, Kaede sputtered words and stared past Momiji into the kitchen.  
Momiji silenced an inner urge to laugh at how stupid KaedeÕs words sounded, after all they had fought through, with her sister trying to destroy the place and people she was now trying desperately to cling to. But for once Kaede was at a loss for words and it seemed almost like she was telling the honest truth.  
ÒKaede...my sister...Ó, Momiji finallly broke all boundaries and rushed towards her sister.  
Anyone watching from a distance would have found the scene a bit odd, two twin girls hugging at seven oÕclock in the morning, outside, with one of the girls almost half naked in pink robes. But then, no one was.  
They broke apart, and Momiji was just about to say how much she had missed Kaede, and how great it would be that she stayed, and how they would share a room, and how happy everyone would be, but a sound from inside the house cut her off.  
ÒOh my God, Kaede, thatÕs Mom! Come on!Ó, Momiji whispered excitedly.  
And grabbing her sisterÕs hand, she dragged Kaede inside the house, expecting to see her MotherÕs shocked expression, but the smile faded off her face when she saw who was really there.  
ÒHey, Momiji...I-Ó, Hs words broke off in mid-sentence.  
Momiji frowned and closed her eyes. This was so so so not good. She opened them again and looked first at Kaede, and then at the tall, handsome man whose mouth had stopped moving and hung open in obvious shock as he stared unwaveringly at MomijiÕs other half.  
Momiji brought words to her throat, knowing that someone had to break the ice.  
ÒKusanagi.Ó She said plainly, and smiled weakly, as though that would explain everything.  
But he didnt even hear her. Kusanagi stared at Kaede like he was seeing her for the first time and Momiji could almost see how much he didnt want to be here right now.  



	2. Chapter Two Dawn brings an explanation

  
Chapter One  
; Returning ;  
  
A small bright green leaf, tinged with brown from the onrushing Autumn, fell through the crisp cool air, twirling as it fell earthward, landed lightly on the soft chestnut hair of an eighteen year old girl. Picking it up with delicate, perfectly manicured fingers, the girl examined the leaf without particular interest, feeling its smoothness on her fingertips.   
Letting the leaf fall to the ground, the girl turned her head upwards, making her long brown hair fall over her shoulders and fly out behind her in the slight breeze. Her emerald green eyes surveyed the tranquil sunset that streaked the sky with beautiful red gold and pinkish blurry colors, which overlooked the last few, true days of the late summer.   
Sighing contentedly, she looked around her at the peaceful woods and the rippling dark turquoise pond over which the quacking of ducks could be heard. Straightening out, the girl suddenly twisted her torso and leaped off the cracked stone bench she had been sitting on for the past hour. Landing on her sneaker-clad feet with a soft thud, Momiji Fujimiya stood tall, pleased to have not fallen on her face as she had done so many times in her past.   
Glancing quickly at her Mashi Maro character watch, MomijiÕs glance lingered and became a shocked stare. It was 9 oÕclock. And dinner at the Fujimiya residence had started half an hour ago. Not that she still lived there, of course.   
It was her final meal with the family before she moved back to Tokyo, where her adoptive father , Mr. Kunikida, had bought her a beautiful little house, painted a sweet soft blue, a blue like the blurring softness where the sky meets the sea in Tokyo Bay. Her new home in the Tokyo countryside wasnÕt the only thing Momiji was looking forward to. Being in Tokyo, the big and crowded city where she learned what she truly was, reminded Momiji of her past, of her horrible, surprising, unbelievable past.  
Momiji grimaced slightly at the memories of many long years ago. Being attacked by creatures that should not have existed in her hometown, being taken away from everything she knew by a government organization, learning her purpose in this twisted world which seemed to be falling apart. For her, back then, it truly was. Momiji had only been fifteen years old, living a calm life with her mother and grandmother in Izumo, and going to school with her best friend, Akiko.  
Then one cold winter morning she was late to school.  
MomijiÕs vision blurred as every moment of her past became one trembling scene. A girl running down a snow strewn path in a forest, early morning mist surrounding her.  
oh no! I'm going to be late!  
And then he was there.  
MomijiÕs own voice reverberated in her mind, the voice of a girl who had changed in tremulous amounts over the past three years.  
And then he had stepped into her life, knocking her down, destroying her world, and setting her senses on fire.  
Kusanagi.  
MomijiÕs pure green eyes misted over gently as she remembered that day. The day she almost sacrificed her life to save Kusanagi, a man who wanted to kill her to free himself from being a servant of Orochi, the monster who had obliterated her school in a tangled mess of angry vines, cement, and broken glass.   
She almost smiled to herself as she thought of how she had felt about him the months that she and Kusanagi had fought against..them.  
The Aragami, the ancient monsters who had forever tried to annihilate the human race to turn the earth into the Kingdom of the Roots.   
The Aragami, who were marked by the mitamas, the vivid blue seeds which supplied them with their incredible, forceful power. Momiji herself, in protecting Kusanagi from OrochiÕs final dying blow, had been branded with a mitama, and given the power to sense the ever-present danger of the Aragami. And then, more memories rushed at her. Learning that she was the Kushinada. The princess Kushinada, who could save Japan from the Aragami by the selfless act of human sacrifice. And finally, being informed that she had a twin sister, another Kushinada, who had been killed by the Aragami many years ago.  
Her name was Kaede.  
Kaede, who believed it was her destiny to save Japan by destroying the human race which polluted and ravaged the beauty of the land. Kaede, who wanted to bring back the god Susano-Oh, and using his power to end the world. Only before returning to the afterworld with Susano-Oh after the Rite of Matsuri had been performed, did Kaede show her true, kind, loving nature.  
Presently, Momiji sighed sadly.   
She missed her sister ferociously. Her heart burned to be with the twin she had never gotten to know. She blinked. The last remnants of the sun were fading from the sky, the dark orange rays bounced off the water of the pond and danced merrily on the sandy banks. Momiji looked at her watch.It was now nine twenty. She realized she had been staring blankly into the depths of the water in retrospection.  
Somewhere far off, an angry roll of thunder exploded into existence, its intimidating sound reverberating off the protesting clouds crowding in the sky. Momiji turned her head towards the now much changed sky, the clouds moving as though being herded by an invisible hand, and wondered why the weather changed so rapidly from a perfect sunset to a possibly rainy evening.  
Suddenly, Momiji felt her world tilt slightly. Dizzy with overwhelming nausea, she leaned against the rough, scratchy bark of an old oak tree. Then, she felt it. Another presence. She could feel its energy waves floating out through the trees. Just as when she had her mitama, she could still detect the emanation of another existence. She was the Kushinada, and her powers extended to the ability of sensing raw energy.   
Pushing away from the oak, Momiji cleared her mind and tried to find the source of whatever was out there among the tall, numerous trees. Then, she knew what was coming straight away. Momiji had felt it before she had heard it.  
_crunch_  
Momiji spun around, her straight brown hair flying out behind her like a sail, her pale complexion turning even lighter in sudden fear.  
Someone or something was here. She was definitely not alone.  
ÒIs someone out there?Ó, she called tentatively, her voice quavering.  
Nothing. No answer.  
Instinctively, Momiji placed her hand on her heart, where her mitama used to be. She pushed her thoughts outward, trying to locate where the pulsating energy was coming from. She shivered, as she could feel the raw fluctuating potency touch her in waves, like the slight fluttering waves of the jade green pond.  
MomijiÕs heart began to pound in her chest. After a minute of silence, she had not heard a sound. Slowly she turned around to the path, and saw the last rays of light die away to the unrelentless night. Looking up compulsively, Momiji saw the bright, full moon glowing among the countless stars.  
A tiny cold drop of the presently threatening rain dropped from the sky and landed on MomijiÕs cheek with a barely audible splat. Then down came another, followed by another. Moments later, uncountable numbers of tiny clean drops of water were falling from the sky, not harsh and objecting, but soft and gentle, like a mist of coolness enveloping the sky and stars everything underneath them.  
Turning her eyes back to the path, Momiji warily gazed around her, acutely aware of her growing fear, taking form inside her.  
Within minutes of walking in the woods, she was drenched in water and very cold. _Great,_ she thought. _Here I am, in the middle of the woods, at night, in the rain, soaking wet, and definitely not alone._  
Just get home said the calm, rational part of her mind.  
A cruel icy breeze lifted up, rushing through the trees, making the entire forest come alive in a frenzy of rustling movement. With numb fingers, Momiji zipped up her red parka all the way up, and turned on her heel in the direction of her house. Walking briskly, MomijiÕs mind was filled with questions, the most important being _Who was out there? Was someone even there?_  
_That presence...it felt so familiar,_ Momiji thought as she walked along the worn dirt path, _it almost felt..like it was reaching out to me....._  
Like a stinging pain, she felt it there again, almost like her soul was aware of something. Something so intimately familiar.  
Momiji gasped. Her green eyes widened, the black voids contracting in fear. Terror overwhelmed her body, and she shook violently.  
Crunch  
The sound came from right behind her.  
Without turning to see what she knew was there, Momiji burst forward in an incredible explosion of speed, fueled by her sheer dread and horror. Stumbling blindly in the dark, the lower branches whipping her face painfully, Momiji ran past the ancient rusty gate, and over the wooden bridge where in daytime you could often see the colorful koi blooping underneath the glassy surface of the water.   
_Run,_ she thought. _Run_.  
Trees, trees. More trees. Would she ever get out of here?  
Suddenly she tripped over the roots of a gnarled tree and fell flying down in the darkness. Momiji cried out as she hit the ground, littered with old rotting leaves that smelled of death and decay and sent her reeling. For a moment she was paralyzed, not really believing or understanding where she was. Then her sense returned to her and she struggled fiercely to get up, only succeeding in pulling herself down even farther as her jacket caught on the worn roots of the unrelenting old tree. Sheer terror jumped through her body as she realized she was stuck. Pulling crazily wasnÕt going to help, she thought. So gathering up her fear and trying to control it, she fumbled with the jacket and the roots with numb fingers as darkness surrounded her, more menacing then ever.   
Her fingers brushed by a protruding limb of the tree, interlacing with the folds of her windbreaker. With a final, pleading pull, she was free from her inanimate captor. Pushing hard against the icy ground that had transformed into mud under the rain falling from the sky, Momiji managed to jump to her feet and leaped back into full gear as she took off again, running at full speed, her shoes thudding hollowly wherever there was dry ground, and mingling with the mud wherever the rain had penetrated the tree canopy.  
Finally leaping over a moss-overgrown log, Momiji burst from the darkness of the woods into the street. The bright halogen lights caused her eyes to water, obscuring her vision slightly. Her mind raced. Just two more blocks until she reached her home, and then she would be safe between solid walls of concrete and wood and windows of hard glass.  
Crickets chirped into the dark consuming night, their song resonating through the air. Momiji stopped and listened, her ears straining for any sound...perhaps the click of shoes on the smooth pavement, or the swish of a red trench coat. Passing quietly from shadow into light and into shadow again as she moved swiftly past the streetlights. Turning the corner by a large mansion-like house, she entered her street. MomijiÕs mind was hazy, like a fog had obscured her thoughts. Step after step, she was almost home. And then, she was already opening the green crosswire gate of her front yard, and walking up the flagstone walkway to the house.  
Breathing shallowly, Momiji picked up her feet wearily up the front steps of the practically polished front porch her mother worked so hard to keep clean. Pulling her house keys out of her pocket, she slipped into the house soundlessly, pulling off her sneakers, which were now caked with dirt and mud from running through the rain-spattered path. Pulling off her windbreaker was not so easy, as the durable material was now soaking wet and clinging to her skin.   
Soon she was free from it, and she stepped into the hallway. Looking into the dining room, she saw that the lights had been turned off, and the table had been cleared. Momiji squinted in the dark at the ancient clock on the wall. It was fifteen minutes till ten.   
How did it get to be so late? she wondered in surprise.  
She padded quietly down the hall, and past her motherÕs room. The door was closed shut. Momiji paused, straining her ears for any strange noises. She relaxed and turned away as soon as she heard the steady sound of her motherÕs breathing, her dreams untroubled and painless.   
Moving farther down the hallway, Momiji concentrated her vision on the space before her, trying to make out the vague shape of the kitchen door. Feeling the sudden coldness of the floor as carpet met tile, and she shivered involuntarily, her mind still ablaze with the nightÕs events. _What had happened?_ Momiji thought desperately as she looked around the spotless little kitchen as though expecting to find the answer on the wooden counter top or above the stainless steel refrigerator which stood humming gently in the corner next to the back door.   
Momiji leaned tiredly against the little kitchen table which stood beside a gingham curtained window which looked out into their flowering garden. With a little sigh, her legs folded beneath her and she sank into the nearest chair, fully realizing how exhausted she really was.  
She buried her head in her arms, and in her mind, she went over everything that had happened.  
What had really happened?  
I was probably imagining things, she thought as she felt herself drift willingly into sleep.  
_But...it had felt different this time...,_Momiji thought as her last few words blurred into unconsciousness, _I felt this before..._  
Before she could finish her reasoning, she was fast asleep, and silence filled the house once more.  
  
Far, far away, consumed in the darkness of the great forest, the trees trembled. A wind rose from the center of a large clearing, accompanied by a strange hum which filled the forest, blocking out every sound. Abruptly, an unbelievably bright, unnatural beam of light fell earthward, originating from the sky in a straight line. The humming sound grew louder and as the beam of light touched ground, it crashed and expanded outward filling the woods with blinding, heavenly light, a ringing celestial sound mixing with the humming. The beam of light was growing, meeting the ground in a dome of the same incredible illumination.   
The beam of light flickered, and died, pulling away with it the ethereal tone. The forest grew silent again, as finally, the dome of light in the center of the clearing faded away. In the deep, fathomless darkness, the outline of a human figure wearing long billowing robes was visible. The trees shivered.  
  



	3. Chapter Three Fall into Old Paths

**Chapter Three  
;Fall into old paths;**  
  
  
**S**he watched him watch her. Watched his eyes flickering with many questions, demands, and accusations. Watched them move slowly, almost afraid to believe what they were seeing, to rest upon the person next to her. She watched his eyes drinking her image hungrily, and looked at his mouth, which hung slightly open in complete shock.  
  
Momiji sighed, and prepared to approach the man before her, the man who had graced the presence of her dreams and musings for so many years. She wondered what to say to him.  
  
It seemed to her that the moment lasted for hours and the silence pressed upon the three of them like a heavy weight full of unfathomable worry and painful memories.  
  
Momiji tried to blank her mind of all the very unhappy thoughts and stepped forward. She now stood between Kaede and Kusanagi. Kusanagi's eyes slid slightly out of focus and he continued to stare at the place where Kaede was standing, now blocked by Momiji's imploring eyes.  
  
''Kusanagi...'', she mumbled inaudibly.  
  
She knew this would be his reaction, but she really wished that it hadnt happened so soon! Kusanagi now moved sideways so he could see Kaede, who stood behind Momiji looking at Kusanagi with a strained smile and eyes full of pain. She too, seemed to be seeing memories come to life again inside her mind.  
  
''Uhmm.....Kusanagi?'', Momiji said a little louder.  
  
Momiji took another step forward and put her hand on Kusanagi's shoulder, shaking him gently. From the first touch of her skin against the thin black cotton shirt he was wearing, his eyes snapped back into focus with such speed and ferocity that for a second Momiji quailed under his sharp glare.  
  
''What is this? Is it real?'', he said with bitterness and stifled fury marking every word.  
  
''What is real, Kusanagi? She is here... I donÕt know how... but she is.'', Momiji said boldly, her words, in opposition, tinged with pride and hope.  
  
His gaze slowly shifted over to Kaede again, and Momiji could see the lines of stubbornness slowly lessening. Momiji turned her head and glanced at Kaede over her shoulder. Her sister still stood in the same place she was when the twin girls raced into the house.  
  
Her eyes were also widened in perplexion and was slowly biting her bottom lip. Momiji moved and looked into Kusanagi's saddened face again. She tightened her grip on his shoulder, and he looked at her again, and this time his features swiftly changed.  
  
''So, Kaede. Here to try and destroy the world once again?'', Kusanagi said quietly, not looking at Kaede but at Momiji.   
  
He seemed almost to be trying to not look at the girl in the pink ceremonial robes. His voice was quiet, but proud and strong and acrid. Kaede closed her eyes, shutting out his cruel features.   
  
''No.. I... I have returned to Earth to live with my sister. With my family... My friends.'', she replied with a tone equal to his, but her voice flowed with spirit and overpowered his thoughtless anger.  
  
He frowned, and Momiji could see he did not believe a word of it.  
  
_Men._,said the still operating corner of the feminine side of her mind.  
  
''Kusanagi. Let the past fade away, dont let it ruin what is to still come. I know you will never forget, but still. Will you ever feel the way you did so many years ago?''  
  
Kaede's voice came floating through the air over Momiji's shoulder. Her words brought him to look at her, and it almost looked like he was seeing her for the first time, because the fire in his slitted eyes faded and almost held a look of pity and regret. He brought his arms around Momiji and held her closer to him.  
  
''Do you really think that you can just come back like this? Wouldnt your presence on earth reawaken the Aragami? Damn it, Kaede. You try so hard to do the right thing, but you just might ruin it all!'', he yelled furiously.  
  
''The Aragami can only return when another Kushinada is reborn.'', Kaede answered calmly, though she was seething inside, being treated like some unwanted stranger like this.  
_Why isnt Momiji standing up for me? Why is she letting him just go on like this..._. The words rang clear in Kaede's mind.  
  
Momiji flustered suddenly, realizing what Kaede had just brought up. She could feel Kusanagi tense up slightly, too.  
  
_Another Kushinada...._, she mused.  
  
Silence rang through the kitchen. Now the scene was upon Kusanagi holding Momiji, with both of them staring quietly at Kaede. They almost seemed to be talking through the power of thought, their bitter argument continued in the shelter of their own minds. Finally, Kusanagi dropped his arms from Momiji, sighed, and closed his eyes. A smirk played on his tanned face.  
  
_How fine he seems..._, Kaede thought secretly, though the nearest thing she wanted now is to give him a right good slap across the face.  
  
Kusanagi shuffled a step back from Momiji, and his cat-like orbs looked off to the side, staring with disinterest at the china cupboard. He almost seemed to be trying **to not** look at Kaede **or** Momiji.  
  
''Whatever is happening, it cant be good. She shouldnt be here'', he raised his arm and angrily pointed a single finger at Kaede. His voice was only as cold as the bitterness in his eyes.   
  
Without another word, he turned on his heel and strode out of the kitchen in fierce steps.  
  
''KUSANAGI!'', Momiji yelled, '' Kusanagi please come back!''.  
  
Her voice was pained and hurt. It seemed to get to him, because he slowed to a halt, and turned his head slightly to look at her.  
  
She stood there, her eyes wide and dejected, her face slightly pale and drawn, and he felt like a complete idiot for being this way.  
  
But he knew, enough was enough, it was hard enough being in the same room as Kaede, much less trying to figure out why suddenly she was back in his life.  
  
''Im sorry, Momiji.''. He felt like he should say more, but the words wouldnt come.  
  
He turned away and started walking again towards the door. Implusively, he pulled at the collar of his red trench coat and drew in his neck in what he thought was a manly gesture.  
  
_Slam_, went the door, and he was gone.  
  
Ten feet away, Kaede shut her eyes and rubbed her temples with a slender hand.  
  
_Goddamn it_, Kaede was already comndemning Kusanagi for his coldness, even with Momiji, the woman he supposedly loved._ Curse him, and his irrational logic._  
  
_Poor Momiji...._, she thought.  
  
Momiji was just standing there, still blankly staring after Kusanagi's extinguished presence. Kaede couldnt see her eyes, but she knew the tears had already begun to roll. She had not known Momiji very long, even in the old days, but she knew her sister often wept.  
  
Kaede shuddered unpleasantly at the reflection upon the past... she couldnt really remember her days when she was resurrected by Lord Susano-Oh to do his bidding... she was always controlled by that self-absorbed idiot..._Murakumo_.  
  
Kaede's brow furrowed as she tried to remember... only a few glimmers could escape into her mind. She knew, though, that she was truly awake from her foolish destiny when Momiji sacrificed herself...for her.  
  
Momiji, who would give up life just for Kaede and the other humans, who gave up love, her love, for Kusanagi, to protect the love she had for others.  
  
When was it... that Kaede gave up her will to Susano-oh.. was ... --  
  
Kaede's thoughts were broken by a quiet thudding noise. She looked up to see Momiji sitting slumped on the floor, her face buried in her arms. She was shaking slightly. From far away, she looked like a poor, lost little girl, with dusty, torn jeans, and a forlorn look on her tear-stained face. A leaf stained with autumn's blood was caught in her auburn hair.  
  
  
Momiji shifted unfortably on the hard stone floor, even though she really didnt care. Why? Why did Kusanagi leave her?   
  
Momiji's tears ran hot at the image of Kusanagi's face when he looked at her sister. The moment seemed to be burned onto the inside of her eyelids, and in torture she forced herself to see it again and again.  
  
It almost even felt...like he was still in love... with _Kaede_....  
_Kusanagi..._ she thought bitterly.  
  
She felt warmth on her shoulder. Kaede's hand rested on her shoulders. Momiji lifted her eyes to look up at Kaede's calm, tranquil, beautiful face. A breeze from the open kitchen door stirred through the kitchen, and Kaede's smooth hair billowed lightly around her face.  
  
A small smile, sad and comforting, was upon her perfectly contoured lips. Her eyes seemed to know everything, and their vast, endless emeralds sparkled from her thick black lashes. From below, Momiji looked in wonder at her perfect, beautiful, powerful sister. She seemes almost unreal. But yet she was here. She was here, and prehaps she would always be.  
  
Momiji instantly calmed under the gaze of her twin. She sighed relaxedly, and all her doubts were slowly ebbing away.  
  
And all at once, Kaede's voice broke the painful silence and rubbed away all of Momiji's worries. Momiji closed her eyes and let her sister's melodious voice ring through her very being:  
  
''Do not fear, sister. Dont let the pain consume you. Live. Live again.''  



End file.
